1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to the armament field, or to that of atmospheric probe devices. It relates to a device for carrying a load such as a missile under a carrying means, in particular under an element (wing or fuselage) of an aircraft, this device having to release the load and accessorily to eject it, i.e. to move it rapidly away from the carrier means. Following such release, the load may be self propelled or not.
2. Description of the Prior Art
From the U.S. Pat. No. 3,040,629, a carrying device for a missile is known equipped with front and rear coupling lugs. This device comprises coupling rails carried by the carrying member in which the lugs of the missile are engaged by sliding the missile along the rails. Disengagement of the missile takes place through the self propulsive force thereof, after a locking device has been put out of action. Furthermore, wedges take up the play between lugs and rails so as to avoid any parasite movement of the missile relative to the carrying member up to the moment of release. In addition, electric connections are provided by local bearing contact between the carrier member and the missile.
This device has the drawback of not being usable for releasing an inert load.
From the French patent published under the No. 2 573 383, a device is known for carrying and ejecting a load retained under a carrier member by means of lugs. For releasing, after unlocking a safety member, disengagement of the lugs from the fixed rails of the carrier member takes place through a translation-stop sequence of the load itself by means of a combined system comprising a pneumatic jack for moving the load in translation and a damper for stopping it. Furthermore, pneumatic ejection jacks are actuated by the same combined system, at the end of the stop sequence.
The device described in French patent No. 2 573 383 has the drawback of requiring the whole mass of the missile to be set in motion, followed immediately by a stop, which requires considerable energy and may cause stresses and even prejudicial shocks not only to the carrier member but also to the missile itself.
The purpose of the present invention is to overcome the above drawbacks presented by known systems, and to this end it provides a device for solving the problem of releasing the load such as a missile by moderate control forces and without displacement of the load.